Blackest Night #8 – Finally!!!

Okay folks, Blackest Night #8 shipped yesterday and we’re going to talk about the ramifications for Firestorm. If you haven’t read it, come back once you’re done. You’ve been warned, there be SPOILERS ahead.

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Ronnie’s back! It’s been more than five years since Ronnie Raymond was killed by the Shadow Thief during Identity Crisis. Now thanks to Geoff Johns and Blackest Night, Ronnie is back amongst the living! The fans were pretty sure this was going to happen, but it was still awesome to see. Rumor is that Ronnie’s return has been in the works since Countdown. If so, it’s been a long wait. To make things even better, Jason is still around too! Looks like for the immediate future Ronnie and Jason will merge to form Firestorm.

I’ll hush up for a minute and let the images speak for themselves…

Costume

Did you notice Firestorm’s new costume? It looks like a fair amalgam of the original Ronnie Raymond/Professor Stein suit, along with Jason Rusch’s more recent Firestorm costume. Obviously the face is Ronnie’s, but the headgear looks like Jason’s. We’ve got Ronnie’s chest emblem, but it glows like Jason’s. The waistline is new, but it’s reminiscent of Jason’s (especially the lack of briefs). The gloves and boots are entirely new. Firestorm’s hair is freakin’ phenomenal! I love all the Kirby-Dots! I hope subsequent artists continue to draw the flames this way. They look positively blazing!

Two things we need a better look at are the collar and the emblem on Firestorm’s left-hand side. I can’t tell whether the collar is Ronnie’s or Jason’s at this time. Also, it appears the left-hand side of the emblem has only two electron paths (while the right-hand side has three). I hope that’s not the case as that drives me nuts. I need symmetry people!

Ronnie/Jason

As I mentioned before, it appears for the time being Firestorm will be composed of Ronnie Raymond and Jason Rusch. We’ve seen Black Lantern Firestorm on the cover of Brightest Day #3 or #4 which ship in June. I’m not sure what that means for Ronnie and Jason, but clearly they’ll be involved.

Some folks are speculating that primary control of the Firestorm body will swap back-and-forth between Ronnie and Jason (possibly dependent upon who instigates the fusion). Some even speculate that the Firestorm body will look different, depending upon who is in control of the form. I’m not sure how much this would add to the story (beyond confusing the general denizens of the DC Universe), so I hope this speculation is incorrect.

Based upon what we’ve seen so far, Ronnie has no memories after his death at the hands of Shadow Thief. He apparently doesn’t recall his appearances in Firestorm volume III alongside Jason, nor does he recall the actions of Black Lantern Firestorm. Jason remembers all of this, most importantly the death of his girlfriend Gehenna at the hands of Black Lantern Firestorm (who had a twisted version of Ronnie’s personality). This should create some fairly dramatic scenes between Ronnie and Jason. I think adding conflict between the two beings that make up Firestorm is a good idea. I’m looking forward to it!

I liked how Jason turned to Mera for comfort. In a later panel (not shown above), you see Mera still hugging Jason in the background. It would be nice if they continue that friendship between Mera and Jason. I don’t imagine they will, but it would be a neat outcome from Blackest Night.

Going Forward

Watch for more Firestorm appearances in Brightest Day! Sounds like there is a lot planned for that 26-issue mini-series. Hopefully the writers are able to give Firestorm the spotlight from time to time. I hope they also find some way to include supporting characters like: Professor Martin Stein, Lorraine Reilly (Firehawk), Mikhail Arkadin (Pozhar), Ed Raymond (Ronnie’s father), and Alvin Rusch (Jason’s father).

10 Comments

I haven’t picked it up yet but this is pretty cool.
It’s funny how everyone still calls him Ronnie. To me, that was his kid name because he started off as a high schooler who had to prep for exams after saving the city.
I think Stein always called him Ronald. I guess Atom and the rest of the Leaguers will always see him as their young protege, even if he isn’t a kid anymore.
It’s nice to see him back. I gave up on Firestorm after they booted him from the matrix during the elemental storyline. Never really followed the Jason arc either, but this might get me back in if he ever gets a title again.
=)

I think it’s too early to suggest that Ronnie and Jason are the “new” Firestorm. Jason is just as likely to quit altogether, and it’s well established that the Firestorm matrix is somewhat malleable at this point. Especially given Stein’s presence (established in BN #1, if not properly seen since), this could just as easily be intended to be a return to the traditional set-up.

Mark – Good point. Ronnie and Jason haven’t been 100% confirmed as the “new” Firestorm, however, I think it’s a safe bet. DC redesigned Firestorm’s costume to incorporate many of Jason’s costume elements. Why go to the trouble if Jason’s just going to be expelled from the matrix?

The Ronnie and Jason fans have been fairly divided. By combining Ronnie and Jason into the new Firestorm, DC could potentially unite these fans and therefore sell more comics featuring Firestorm. It makes sense financially for DC and from a customer satisfaction point of view.

But that’s just my two cents (which probably isn’t worth even that much).

I love this splash – so many great characters returned and so much potential set up! I’m glad Ronnie’s back. As old as it may make me, while ‘any’ is better than ‘none’ it just doesn’t feel like Firestorm without him.

The Kirby dots are awesome, especially in that separation panel, as is the way Reis renders the hand of power, so it’s on fire but nuclear at the same time.

I’m excited for this resurrection and all of the drama that will unfold between Ronnie and Jason if they have to join as Firestorm. I didn’t really like the combination in Batman: The Brave & The Bold with Ronnie as an older, dumber jock. This new equation, however, could be a lot of fun. Geoff Johns mentioned on Twitter that Firestorm will be very important to Brightest Day.

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